The legend of St. George and the Dragon

The cult of this saint seems to have been introduced in Portugal by the English Crusaders that helped D. Afonso Henriques in the conquest of Lisbon, in 1147.
Nuno Álvares Perreira was devoted to this martyr and ordered the saint’s image to be painted on his flag. It was D. João I who chose St. George as the name of the castle.

This saint was born in Capadocia, he was known for his braveness and conviction for the Christian religion.
When emperor Diocletian decreed the persecution to the Christians, George opposed him, for this the emperor ordered him to be tortured. Miraculously, the wheel of acute tips that should have cut him into pieces, left him intact. Only after many vicissitudes and persecutions, George finaly was decapitated on 23 of April of 290.

According to the legend, in Silene, city of Libya, there was a dragon to which the people made daily offerings, normally two sheep. One certain day, however, it was necessary to offer a human sacrifice to calm the dragon. The king's only daughter was the chosen one. George appeared in the city at that precise moment when they where sacrificing the child, and immediately freed her and fought the monster. He mounted his horse and attacked the dragon, killing it.